An Imperfect Measure of Purity—Round 2
More meditations on electrical conductivity and the imperfect concept of the perfect insulator.
Conductivity · Grotthuss Mechanism · Henrys Law · Pure Water · Resistivity
An Imperfect Measure of Purity
Pure water is often described as a “perfect insulator” in the literature of chemistry and physics. Is this characterization accurate?
Conductivity · Dielectric · Dipole Moment · EMF · Insulator · Salinity · Water
Profiles in Green: Japanese Negi
Everything you always wanted to know about the onion family, without tears.
Size Matters (Particle, That Is)
Never assume your particles are homogeneous. In fact, they often are not.
Lime Particle Size · Material Properties · U.S. Standard Sieve
Quantum Yield and Other Benign Amusements
A pocket-sized PAM fluorometer, a sweaty Kinston cornfield, and a Pakistani visiting scholar add up to a surprising verdict on whether open-source electronics can catch what drought stress does to a corn leaf before the human eye ever notices.
MultispeQ · PAM Fluorometry · Photochemistry · PhotosynQ · Quantum Yield
Interrogating Plant Status in the Key of F
The story of how scientists learned to eavesdrop on chlorophyll’s secret signal and read a leaf’s state of mind.
Farming is like conducting a hundred-piece symphony orchestra, in which each instrument must be perfectly balanced and tuned to achieve the desired effect.
Profiles in Green: Yukina Savoy
Everything you wanted to know about Asian greens, plated.
Brassicaceae · Cool-Season Vegetables · Mustard Family · Yukina Savoy
Further Notes on Climate “Smart” Agriculture: Carbon Sequestration and its Discontents
What is the global carbon sequestration potential of the soil in agricultural systems?
Climate Change · Climate Smart · Conservation Tillage · Soil
Climate “Smart” or Climate Semantics?
What’s in a word? We explore the ever-shifting landscape of professional jargon.
Carbon Pools · Climate Change · Climate Smart · Crop Phenology · Farmer Innovation · Regenerative Agriculture · Sustainable Agriculture